Tender zucchini, flavorful pesto, and juicy summer heirloom tomatoes make for the perfect summer-style pesto flatbread!
Let’s throw some summer bounty on our flatbread!! And a heckin lot of cheese.
Pesto of course is making an appearance because it wouldn’t be a summer flatbread without it. It’s also my favorite condiment ever and yes, I did indeed call pesto a condiment. ??
This pesto flatbread is also technically appetizer material but nobody will judge if you make it your meal. It’s cousin to pizza! Pizza’s always the main event.
Let me tell ya, for a flatbread that’s jam-packed with all sorts of veggie goodness, it’s certainly not lacking in all the things you love about pizza.
We’re talking crisp, airy crust. Gooey fresh mozz cheese. A thick layer of flavorful pesto, followed by juicy tomatoes, tender zucchini, and a heavy hand of basil.
Everything gooooood about summer in other words.
Let’s make pesto flatbread together! >>
First up is the crust. If you’re short on time, you can totally use a pre-made flatbread crust, but if you’ve got time to make a dough and let it rise for awhile, I highly recommend trying it from scratch! This crust is basic but it’s crispy on the bottom and perfectly chewy + airy on the inside.
Only FIVE ingredients in the dough too! (not counting the water) Yeast, olive oil, flour, salt, sugar, water. Mix up your dough and let it rise until doubled (no kneading either!) If you like your crust to have a bit of a stronger flavor, you can let it rise up to 8 hours on the counter.
Let’s talk toppings! Our “sauce” for this flatbread is of course, pesto. If you have a favorite homemade pesto recipe, feel free to use that or go for the jarred stuff if that’s easier.
Fresh sliced mozz, sliced heirloom tomatoes, and zucchini ribbons get layered on the pesto. TIP for getting the zucchini into those cool swirls: cut the zucchini into very thin 4-6 inch strips and roll up into a circle and secure with toothpicks. Once the flatbread is baked, you can easily remove the toothpicks.
For baking the flatbread, I include directions for both baking in a pan and on a pizza stone. If you have a pizza stone, I highly recommend going that route as that makes for the most even bake on your flatbread.
And holy smokes, for this pesto flatbread being as simple and rustic as it is, the FLAVORS, yo! A heavy sprinkle of fresh minced basil on this flatbread is completely necessary after you pull it from the oven. It adds an unbeatable freshness factor.
Aaaand yeah, that thing I said a bit ago about this technically being an appetizer? Scratch that, this flatbread is the main summer event. ??
More ways to throw pesto into your summer meals! >>
Zucchini Mozzarella Heirloom Tomato Pesto Flatbread
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Ingredients
Flatbread Dough
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 3/4 cup warm water (110F)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
Flatbread Toppings
- Olive oil and cornmeal for baking
- 1/3 cup prepared pesto
- 8 oz fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced
- 2 medium heirloom tomatoes, cored and thinly sliced
- 1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced into ribbons
- Kosher salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh basil
Instructions
Flatbread Dough
- In a medium bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water. Let stand for 10 minutes until foamy. Mix in olive oil until smooth. Add salt and flour, stirring until a soft dough comes together.
- Place dough in a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise at room temperature 1 hour or until doubled in size.
Flatbread Toppings
- Grease a pizza stone with olive oil and heat in a 425F oven for 30 minutes. Sprinkle a pizza peel with cornmeal. OR if using a regular baking pan, spray with pan spray and sprinkle with cornmeal.
- Punch risen dough down and divide in half. Shape dough into 9-inch long flatbreads on prepared pizza peel OR baking pan.
- Spread pesto over each flatbread crust and top with mozzarella slices, tomatoes, zucchini, and salt and pepper to taste.
- If using pizza peel, gently slide flatbreads off of peel onto hot pizza stone OR if using pan, simply place in the oven. Bake flatbreads 15-18 minutes until crust is a deep golden brown and cheese is golden browned. Remove stone or pan (if using) from oven and let flatbreads cool 5-10 minutes before topping with basil and slicing into wedges. Serve immediately while hot and enjoy!
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